Fact Sheets

• Keep Illegal Fish Off America's Dinner Plates

  • Nov 19, 2012, 14:10 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  The International Fisheries Stewardship and Enforcement Act (IFSEA) (S. 269) was introduced Feb. 11, 2013 by Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and eight co-sponsors to strengthen critical enforcement tools and eliminate illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.More

   

• Guess Who is Coming to Port Today?

  • Nov 09, 2012, 16:45 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  At the 12-19 November, 2012, meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, ICCAT, Contracting Parties (CPCs) are in a position to stop illegal fishing, promote effective fisheries management, and improve safety of vessels at sea.More

   

• Secure Our Ports and Defend U.S. Fishermen

  • Jul 31, 2012, 17:05 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  The Pirate Fishing Elimination Act (S. 267) was introduced February 11, 2013 by U.S. Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and eight co-sponsors to implement the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA) and to help eliminate illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.More

   

• FAQ: What is a Regional Fishery Management Organization?

  • Feb 23, 2012, 15:25 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation, Protecting the Deep Sea

  An RFMO—short for regional fisheries management organization—is an international body made up of countries that share a practical and/or financial interest in managing and conserving fish stocks in a particular region.More

   

• Closing the Gap: Comparing IATTC’s port State measures with the FAO Agreement on Port State Measures

  • Jun 28, 2011, 14:20 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  The Pew Environment Group conducted a gap analysis to identify specific disparities in port State measures (PSMs) adopted by 10 regional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs) as they compare to the FAO Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA). The goal of this research is to offer information that RFMOs can use to strengthen their own port State control systems and, as a result, help reduce illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, on both a regional and global scale.More

   

• Combating Pirate Fishing

  • Nov 05, 2010, 14:40 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  About a fifth of all fish taken from the world’s oceans are caught illegally or beyond the reach of regulators, significantly threatening the global ocean ecosystem and undermining the economies of fishing communities.More

   

• The Port State Measures Agreement Implementation Toolkit

  • Sep 09, 2010, 15:45 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Ports play a major role in the fishing industry. They give vessels and crews access to essential services and supplies and enable vessel operators to offload their catch and transport it to market.More

   

Reports

• Gap Analysis: Comparing CCAMLR's Port State Measures

  • Oct 17, 2011, 09:20 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  The Pew Environment Group conducted a gap analysis to identify specific disparities in port State measures adopted by 10 regional fisheries management organisations as they compare to the FAO Port State Measures Agreement. The goal is to offer information that can be used to strengthen port State control systems and, as a result, help reduce illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.More

   

• Deep Trouble for the Deep Sea

  • Sep 08, 2011, 12:30 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Protecting the Deep Sea

  The deep sea, home to some of the world’s most unusual creatures, is teeming with biological diversity, most of which has yet to be scientifically-documented. But in spite of the wonders that exist far below the surface, the deep sea is being destroyed.  More

   

• A Methodology for Capacity Needs Assessments Towards Implementation of the Port State Measures Agreement

  • Jul 07, 2011, 15:15 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  • Français

  Detailed methodology on how to undertake a capacity needs assessment for the implementation of port state measures in developing countries.More

   

• Closing the Gap: Comparing Tuna RFMO Port State Measures With the FAO Agreement on Port State Measures

  • Jul 06, 2011, 16:15 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  • Español

  The Pew Environment Group has conducted a gap analysis comparing the port State measures (PSMs) established by 10 Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) with those established by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (PSMA, or Agreement).More

   

• Finding Sustainability: Recommendations to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT)

  • Oct 22, 2010, 15:50 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Tuna Conservation

  The ICCAT 17th Special Meeting of the Commission should take strong and meaningful action to ensure a future for Atlantic bluefin tuna and sharks through the implementation of clear science-based conservation and management measures (CMMs), as well as decisive action to implement port State measures to combat illegal fishing.More

   

• Port State Performance: Putting Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing on The Radar

  • May 26, 2010, 14:15 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing is notorious for undermining efforts to manage fisheries sustainably and has detrimental environmental, social and economic consequences.More

   

• Finding Sustainability: Recommendations to the U.N. Fish Stocks Review Conference

  • May 26, 2010, 14:05 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Tuna Conservation

  This session of the United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement (UNFSA) Review Conference should take strong and meaningful action to improve the functioning and accountability of regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) in order to ensure the sustainable management of high seas fisheries.More

   

• Preliminary Findings from a Gap Analysis

  • May 26, 2010, 14:00 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  The Pew Environment Group is conducting a gap analysis to compare the port State measures established by ten Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) with the port State measures established by the FAO Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA).More

   

• Costs of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing in EU Fisheries

  • Nov 04, 2008, 14:35 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, European Marine Programme

  Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing is a serious threat to fisheries sustainability in EU fisheries, and worldwide.More

   

Other Resources

• Major Tuna Vessel Is Denied Port Landing Because of Evidence of Illegal Fishing

  • Apr 19, 2013, 13:30 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  For the second time in 25 days, a major tuna fishing vessel that is suspected of fishing illegally was denied permission to land its catch in a port in southeastern Africa.More

   

• A Successful Illegal Fishing Crackdown

  • Apr 02, 2013, 15:40 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  A recently launched Southeast African partnership to crack down on illegal fishing in the Indian Ocean continues to produce early victories. On March 26, the government of the Seychelles Islands denied port entry to the South Korean tuna fishing vessel, Premier, due to suspected illegal fishing.More

   

• Chile Latest to Strengthen Port Measures to Stop Illegal Fishing

  • Mar 22, 2013, 09:30 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Chile has become a party to the Port State Measures Agreement, a major international treaty to combat illegal fishing.More

   

• Remarks from Pew Executive Vice President Josh Reichert on the Launch of Interpol's Project Scale

  • Feb 26, 2013, 14:10 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  On Feb. 26, 2013, Interpol, the government of Norway, and The Pew Charitable Trusts launched Project Scale, a new effort to reduce illegal fishing throughout the world. Josh Reichert, who runs Pew's environmental initiatives, spoke at the launch event.More

   

• Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing: Frequently Asked Questions

  • Feb 25, 2013, 12:00 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Pressure on the world's fish stocks is at an all-time high, and although most industrial fishing operations act within the law, some take to the seas fully intending to steal fish. But how is illegal fishing defined? Learn more with our answers to some frequently asked questions.More

   

• New Bipartisan Bills Take on Foreign Illegal Fishing

  • Feb 11, 2013, 15:30 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Recognizing the growing threat posed by foreign illegal fishing, Senator Jay Rockefeller, Senator Lisa Murkowski and 8 co-sponsors have introduced two important bills that would safeguard U.S. ports, strengthen enforcement, and protect American fishing interests.More

   

• U.S. Names Illegal Fishing Countries, Now Must Act

  • Jan 17, 2013, 11:30 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, European Marine Programme, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  To get a country to curtail illegal fishing, it appears, will take more than public shaming. A January 11th U.S. government report to Congress listed 10 countries whose vessels are known to engage in illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing on the high seas; five of the countries have made the list before. More

   

• Press Briefing: International Meeting on Tuna, Sharks and Illegal Fishing

  • Nov 08, 2012, 10:25 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  Experts from Pew provide an overview of the key issues relating to bluefin tuna, sharks and illegal fishing.More

   

• COFI 30 Builds on Rio+20 Momentum

  • Jul 19, 2012, 13:50 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation, Protecting the Deep Sea

  Participants in the 30th session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI 30) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, which took place one month after the U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), noted that Rio’s momentum could be used to address pressing ocean issues such as illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, management of shark fisheries, and sustainability of small-scale fisheries.More

   

• An Open Letter to NOAA Regarding the 2012 Meeting of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission

  • Jul 06, 2012, 10:30 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  In an open letter to Dr. Jane Lubchenco of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Pew Environment Group writes to express concern regarding the lack of meaningful outcomes at the recent Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission meeting.More

   

• Failed! One Out of Ten for Sustainability as Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission Concludes

  • Jul 06, 2012, 10:10 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  • Español

  Last week’s meeting of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) which manages tuna fisheries across twenty percent of the world’s total ocean area in the Eastern Pacific Ocean was a step backwards for conservation, ignored science and failed endangered species, according to the Pew Environment Group.More

   

• After Rio+20, What Now for the Upcoming UN Fisheries Meeting?

  • Jul 02, 2012, 11:40 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Committee on Fisheries will hold its 30th annual meeting 9-13 July, 2012 in Rome. The Committee on Fisheries (COFI) works to secure sustainable conservation and management of the world’s fisheries.More

   

• A Tuna Empire at Risk

  • Jun 25, 2012, 09:30 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission faces tough issues to ensure legal and sustainable fishing in a vast area of the Pacific Ocean.More

   

• Talks at Meeting for World's Largest Tuna Fishery Collapse

  • Apr 02, 2012, 10:20 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC), a regional fisheries management organization that brings together Pacific island, Asian, U.S., European Union, and other foreign fishers, ended March 30 in Guam with a failure to end overfishing of a major tuna species.More

   

• Guide to Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RMFOs)

  • Feb 23, 2012, 15:55 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation, Protecting the Deep Sea

   Regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) are international bodies made up of countries that share a practical and/or financial interest in managing and conserving fish stocks in a particular region. More

   

• Measure Up For Sustainability

  • Feb 06, 2012, 12:25 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  The WCPFC aims to ensure the long-term conservation and sustainable use of the fish stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO), an area covering 20 percent of the Earth’s surface and containing the world’s largest tuna fishery.More

   

• U.S. Makes Progress to Combat Illegal Fishing

  • Nov 15, 2011, 13:05 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  The Obama administration formally transmitted a major international treaty, aimed at cracking down on illegal fishing worldwide, to the U.S. Senate for ratification.More

   

• Success Story: Reeling in Illegal Fishing

  • Feb 22, 2011, 16:35 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Stop the destruction of fish stocks and ecosystems caused by illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.More

   

• Closing Loopholes: Getting Illegal Fishing Under Control

  • May 26, 2010, 16:50 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Eighty percent of the world’s marine fish stocks are fully- or overexploited. Illegal and unreported fishing alone accounts for catches worth as much as $23.5 billion annually; this represents an estimated 11 to 26 million tons of fish, equivalent to about one-fifth of the global reported catch. Crucially, the more fish stocks are exploited, the more the proportion of illegal catch appears to increase.More

   

• Questions and Answers Regarding Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing

  • Nov 04, 2008, 14:25 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing

  Some questions and answers surrounding the launch of the eftec report.More

   

Compilations

• International Policy: Indian Ocean Tuna Commission

  • Apr 15, 2013, 12:00 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission is a regional fisheries management organization responsible for the management of tuna and tuna-like species in the Indian Ocean and adjacent seas.More

   

• International Policy: Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission 2012

  • Nov 15, 2012, 16:55 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  With a regional tuna catch worth $5.5 billion, the challenge is how to balance wealth, opportunities, and investment with sustainability and a healthy ocean. The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) has a unique and important responsibility both for the world’s largest tuna fishery and for the sharks that inhabit the waters of the WCPFC convention area.More

   

• International Policy: Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) 2013 Annual Meeting

  • May 31, 2012, 11:49 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  As the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, or IATTC convenes for its 85th annual meeting in Veracruz, Mexico in June, the Pew Charitable Trusts is urging this body to ensure that tuna and shark fishing within its area is legal and sustainable. More

   

• International Policy: Kobe III

  • Jul 08, 2011, 12:00 EST
  • Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Shark Conservation, Global Tuna Conservation

  From July 12 – 14 in La Jolla, California, all five tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) will gather to discuss coordinated management efforts for fishing of tuna, tuna-like species and other species affected by tuna fishing.More

   

• Successes of the Pew Environment Group

  • Jan 01, 2011, 12:00 EST
  • Campaign for America's Wilderness, Global Ocean Legacy, Conserving New England Fish, Global Campaign to End Illegal Fishing, Global Ocean Legacy - Chagos, Global Ocean Legacy - Coral Sea, Global Ocean Legacy - Marianas, International Boreal Conservation Campaign, Oceans North: Protecting Life in the Arctic

  Read about our successes, from the designation of the world’s largest no-take marine reserve in the Indian Ocean to the signing of the world’s largest conservation agreement in the Canadian boreal forest.More